What does deo placere vix potest mean?

Answer 1

"He can scarcely please God."

This is a shortened form of a quotation apparently from St. Jerome: Homo mercator vix aut numquam potest Deo placere, "A man who is a merchant can scarcely or never please God."

Answer 2

H o m o mercator numquam deo placere potest. 

Wrong translation:

A merchant can never be pleasant to God.

In order to do a correct translation one has to practice sentence analysis.

What kind of constituent is "mercator" in the Latin sentence?

It is the apposition.

What is an apposition?

An apposition indicates the condition of the subject at the time of the action.

 

So the correct translation must be:

“If a human being is a merc or mercenary at the time

when he is expected to be a humane being

it cannot be pleasant to God.”

 

By no means was the sentence meant to downgrade or belittle the profession of merchants.

The Good Samaritan was a merchant on travel.

He needed and used money to help the poor man who had fallen under the robbers.

He carried him to the guesthouse and transferred him to the host, and payed the host for caring for him until recovered.

He needed money for that purpose and used his for humane reasons,

just like we do nowadays with our relief organizations.

They, too, need money in order to help.

And we, with our donations, contribute to the relief organization.

Katharina Gutsche, Grossbottwar, 2023